


Finding Strength In You

by elegantmoonchild



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Coda, F/M, Fluff, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-23
Updated: 2017-10-23
Packaged: 2019-01-21 17:36:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12462585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elegantmoonchild/pseuds/elegantmoonchild
Summary: A coda to “Fade Into Me (I’ll Fade Into You)” for those of you who were interested in an epilogue for Betty and Jughead. It’s fluffy and whipped in all the right places, and though not required I hope for those of you interested that you enjoy it. This is my thank you again for all of the treasured love and support that you gave to this fic. I’m here to serve and give the masses what they want!





	Finding Strength In You

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so, after a few requests to write a coda or epilogue for _Fade Into Me (I’ll Fade Into You),_ I decided to give it a whirl. These two characters are so special to me, the words just flowed out and here we have a second helping of sugary happy ending for our OTP. This is definitely not required reading, just an extra slice of the pie. I hope you enjoy!
> 
> I do not own the rights to the Archie Comics or Riverdale, and the content of this story is strictly from my own imagination.

\----------------------------------------------------------------

It was just after the 7 pm hour and Betty was exhausted. She had been running around all day, flitting from one room to the next, handing out medications here and there to her sick patients. Her new patient had come in with the flu, and Betty was thankful she had received her seasonal shot, not quite excited at the prospect of another factor that would drain her energy down for the count. 

Betty slid into a rolling chair behind the nurses’ station just as the night shift crew was departing the elevator to circle around the giant desk, seeking out their companion day nurses for report. Just as Betty was taking a sip from her now lukewarm ice water, a mousy brunette popped up in front of her, leaning over the desk to peer down at Betty. 

Betty raised her eyebrows softly, swallowing down the water. “Hey Midge,” she smiled. She set down her water bottle and reached into her scrub pocket for her paper “brain.” 

“Hey there, Betty. You ready for report?” 

Betty nodded and exhaled softly. “Hell yes. My feet are _killing_ me right now and I’ve got a hot date with my couch in just a few short moments. Did you get any sleep?” 

Midge shrugged her shoulders, though there was a bit of blush perking up along the tops of her cheeks. “A little, though Moose woke me up when he got up for work just as I was sliding into bed. He… uh… well, let’s just say I sent him off to work in a good mood.” 

Betty laughed, knowing exactly the predicament Midge had found herself in. “Trust me, I’ve been there before. I don’t know, though… Seems like quite the thing worth missing a little bit of sleep over.” 

Midge straightened and laughed, her eyes alight with gossip. “Oh, absolutely. Can’t say it didn’t start my day off right, either – or at least after I woke up this afternoon.” 

The two girls exchanged a bit more playful feminine banter, old friends from when they first started working on this unit years ago. Finally, Betty straightened out the piece of paper in her hand and proceeded to detail Midge about the patients from her assignment. 

When she stood about thirty minutes later, she could feel the ache in her back radiate down along her spine. It had been a long day, and Betty was dreaming of warm water and rose-scented soap for her feet. She braced a hand on her lower back and reached for the jacket on the back of her chair. She bundled herself up in a heavy coat and green and red scarf, prepared for the chill of the outdoors and the festive sights that surrounded them. 

It was Christmas time again, just a week before the actual holiday, but the whole hospital was abuzz with the excitement of the season. Streamers and tinsel and sprigs of green decorated the halls and the inside of the elevators, every step you went a cheerful reminder of a time to be thankful. After she had gathered her things and stepped inside, she pressed the ground floor button and relaxed back against the railing for the short duration of the ride. 

When the doors opened, she was greeted with a giant 20 ft. tall evergreen that stood in the center of the foyer of the hospital. It was decorated in colorful babbles and candy canes and toy ornaments. There were little angels holding tiny signs with the names of those they had lost that year, and if she got close enough she would be able to see the ornament with the name “Jellybean” painted in red. 

Just as she was closing in on the exit to the hospital, anxious about having to hail a cab in this busy winter season, she heard someone behind her calling her name. She turned to see Ethel bouncing out of the elevator, her curls jumping up and down along the nape of her neck. She was covered from toe to shoulder in thick winter gear, but her face was warm and bright. 

“Hey,” she breathed when she had caught up with Betty. “I’ll walk out with you.” 

Betty nodded and smiled back, “Sure.” 

Before they began their trek onto the snow-covered sidewalks outside, Ethel peered down at Betty, traveling up from her toes to the tip of her head. 

“Betty, you look so pretty, like you’re glowing. The Christmas season definitely suits you and your newest little addition.” She put her hand on Betty’s stomach and smiled before rolling her eyes. “God, you’re so tiny you can’t even tell you’re seven months along. I envy you.” 

Betty chuckled, placing her own hand on her growing belly. “Thank you so much.” The two women proceeded forward, out into the cold. “There are days, though, where I feel like a giant whale. I don’t know how you’ve done this twice, Ethel.” 

Her curly-haired companion shrugged and chuckled, creating the mist of hot air with her laughter. “Trust me, you get used to it after a while. Plus the before and after parts are what’s best.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “Especially the before. And then after that you kind of just have to bide your time feeling bloated and tired until the baby decides to come out. Then it’s nothing but absolute love and bliss.” She squealed, throwing an arm around Betty to hug her tightly to her side. “Oh Betty, you’re going to love being a mom.” 

Betty joined in on the laughter, excitement of what’s to come tingling throughout the tips of her toes. “I certainly hope so.” She looked down lovingly at her stomach, and smoothed out a trail with the palm of her hand along its curve. “Right now, I can’t imagine wanting anything more than that. Well, maybe a pizza and a foot rub.” 

The girls eventually parted ways, Ethel heading to her car in the parking garage after Betty had successfully hailed a cab. As she climbed her way inside into the warmth of the taxi, she chose to silently reflect on how grateful she was for the fortunate circumstance of being where she was in this moment in her life. 

Last Christmas season, she had found herself slipping into the role of “mother,” only to have it taken away shortly after. She had fallen in love and nearly lost it. She had come so far since the spring. She had moved into a bigger apartment. She had been promoted to a higher level of RN. She had found herself surprisingly pregnant and unwed. Of course, Betty’s mother had initially made a few off-the-cuff comments about the ordeal, the tone of disappointment not quite subtle enough to not sting, however after a few months Alice Cooper had come around and was happily embracing the prospect of becoming a grandmother. 

Betty smiled to herself, realizing that sometimes things may show up a bit out of order but life doesn’t always happen in the sequence you’d expect. 

When the cab pulled up next to her apartment building, she gathered her supplies and paid the driver before crawling out of the back seat. Typically, she would walk the three flights of stairs, encouraging herself to maintain a decent amount of activity and exercise, however she was entirely too exhausted for doing anything more than what was required of her. She found herself a cozy spot in the corner of the elevator and rode her way up to her apartment. 

After she successfully unlocked the door, she stepped inside, immediately welcomed with the warmth of a crackling fireplace and the smell of something salty and cheesy and delicious. Her stomach grumbled and she could feel the baby nudge her in her side, almost as if reminding her that there were two people hungry in that one body. She chuckled to herself as she unfurled the scarf set and unbuttoned her coat, hanging it up in the closet near the entrance. There was soft music coming from the vicinity of the kitchen, but as she rounded the corner of the entry way, she found the room unoccupied. 

Instead, there was a tall, raven-haired man perched on a tall stool in the living room, settled in front of a tiny wooden office desk. He was typing away furiously at the keys, his brows pressed together in firm concentration. 

Betty smirked to herself, taking a few steps forward with her hand on her stomach. 

“You know, for someone who writes children’s books, you sure don’t look like you’re having any fun.” She said cheekily, amused at his expression as it changed from stern to excitement, his head swiveling quickly toward her at the sound of her voice. 

“Hey babe,” Jughead smiled, sliding off the stool, swaggering lazily before her. He reached down and placed a kiss on the top of her head, laying his fingers briefly over hers that were settled just above her belly. “Chicken’s almost done. How was your day?” 

He inched back, heading toward the open kitchen space, his ears still perked for conversation. Betty plopped herself down onto the couch, throwing her arms and head limply to the back of the cushions. She let out an exasperated sigh. 

“It was pretty rough, Jug. I don’t think I sat down once today.” She tossed her eyes back over in his direction. “I think you’ll probably need to rub my feet tonight.” 

Jughead picked up the knife and settled above the cutting board, chopping down on a long cucumber. He smiled as he worked, chuckling to himself. “I think I can do that.” 

Betty closed her eyes and let out a soft moan. “Oh my God, what are you cooking? It smells wonderful.” 

Jughead pivoted around to retrieve a bottle of ranch dressing from the fridge, closing the door shut, pictures and magnets littering the front – a snapshot of Betty and Jughead in the park, an old photo of Jellybean nestled under a living room fort, the cardstock “Save-the Date” for Veronica and Archie’s upcoming nuptials. 

“I’m making roast chicken with rosemary, cheesy creamed mashed potatoes, and a large garden salad. Although I took your advice, though.” He looked up at her and winked. “No green peppers.” 

Betty groaned. “Thank God. They’ve been making me so gassy.” 

Jughead chuckled, continuing to transfer thin cut veggies to the giant glass bowl of greenery beside him on the counter. Once he was finished, he carried the salad bowl over to their dining room table, settling it beside the bubbling pot of white potatoes covered with a thick film of cheddar cheese. As he made his way back to the kitchen to pull out the chicken from the oven, he peered around the top of the couch to find Betty dozing off. He playfully ran his fingers across her hair, almost to the kitchen when she saw her finally stir. 

“Babe, don’t fall asleep quite yet. Dinner’s ready.” 

Betty brought her head forward, willing herself to stay awake. She looked down at her feet then looked back up, a bit of perplexed embarrassment on her face. 

Jughead watched as the wheels in her head were spinning. “Babe... you okay?” 

She turned her head to face him and for a moment he thought she was going to cry. “I don’t think I can get off of this couch by myself.” 

Jughead just chuckled. 

\----------------------------------------------------------------

After they had devoured their dinner, exchanging stories about their day – Betty with the latest hospital gossip and Jughead about the latest chapter in his new developing children’s story – they settled onto the couch with a big bowl of kettle corn and two mugs of hot cocoa. 

Betty leaned into the side pillows, her feet up in Jughead’s lap as his hands worked wonders on her toes. When he dug his knuckles up and down the soles, Betty let out a long moan and closed her eyes. 

“Ugh, baby, that feels wonderful.” 

Jughead smiled, turning his attention to the television screen where they had queued up _Jurassic Park._ It was meant to be a new tradition, started just this year in their new home. They planned to watch it during the Christmas season, a tribute to his sister who had passed away that spring. To miss her was something familiar now. Long gone were the days of inconsolable grieving, though Jughead could admit there were still days he felt like breaking down, days where he would reach into the box of her old clothes just to smell the little bit of her scent that still lingered there. He and Betty were building a family, but there would always be a part of him that mourned for the family he had a year ago. 

Betty watched as his face turned from relaxed and happy to reflective and somber. She knew he was thinking about Jellybean. In the months since her passing, he had fallen apart and somehow miraculously found a way to put himself back together. Though they found love again with each other, that didn’t save them from the fights that still existed. Though most of their reunion was filled with bliss, and had thus been for a majority of their relationship, there were times she could still feel him slipping into the easy inclination to push her away. There were times she thought they wouldn’t be able to survive it, but they came through, out the other end stronger than ever. 

They decided to cohabitate, easier to share an apartment than pay two rents. Plus, they knew their relationship was heading into more serious waters and they wanted to wade in the waves together. Betty knew there was a part of Jughead that was haunted by the memory of Jellybean in every crevice of his old apartment, and realized when they had argued about moving that it would be hard for him to let go of that giant piece of his sister that he still clung to. However, after a night of tears and reflection and amazing lovemaking, Jughead realized the only person holding him back from happiness was himself, and happiness was ultimately what JB had wanted for him. 

Betty knew he had been through so much, and she admired his strength. He had stood tall in the face of despair, and though he had crumbled more than once, he always found a way to get back up again and fight for another day. She realized this was just another reason why she loved him, and when she found out she was pregnant, it was what made her realize he’d be an excellent father. 

She remembered what it had been like, the fear of sitting on that toilet seat with her knees bouncing up and down along the cold tile floor of their bathroom. Jughead had been in a meeting with his publisher, and after four days straight of waking up feeling sick to her stomach, Betty took advantage of the afternoon alone to buy a pregnancy test. 

During the eternity of those three minutes, she asked herself over and over _What if it says yes, that I’m pregnant? What then?_ Betty had always wanted a family, and there was a part of her that was over the moon at the prospect of having a baby with Jughead, she suppressed her excitement with the fear that maybe it was all too much for him. Maybe he wasn’t ready to have a baby with her. They had just moved into their new apartment, and he had just made a huge life change with her. What if this was too much? 

When the timer was up and she snatched up the applicator, her heart lifted and dropped at the strip that said _positive._

An hour later, Jughead came home, floating on a cloud of good news that the publisher decided to pick up the series he had begun during his grieving period over Jellybean. To him, it was just another step in the moving forward motion of life. When he came home, he was startled by Betty’s appearance, sitting at the dining room table, dressed down in a beautiful sundress of blue that made her eyes pop and took his breath away. 

Betty, though still worried at his reaction to the pregnancy news, wanted to make this a special occasion. She had purchased a bouquet of purple orchids from the corner market down the street, now her favorite flowers and their agreed-upon symbol for Jellybean. She had placed them in a beautiful crystal blue vase on the table, next to the stuffed dog Jellybean had given Jughead and the pregnancy test that still read “pregnant.” 

When his eyes darted from her to the table and the display she had created, she could sense his apprehension, and her nerves threatened to bubble up and spill over into another bout of nausea. 

“Betty,” he took a step forward toward her and the table, throwing his light jacket on the top edge of the couch. “What’s going on?” 

Betty bit her bottom lip and turned her attention to the table. “Jug, we have a surprise for you.” 

When he looked down at the table and saw the pregnancy test, his eyes went from narrowed slits of confusion to wide bulges of understanding. He looked from the test to Betty, the test to Betty, letting it all sink in. He saw the flowers and the stuffed dog and felt the tears begin to well up in his eyes. When he landed back on Betty, he could see she was also on the verge of crying. 

“Does this… are we…” he shut his eyes, willing the words to come out complete. When he looked at her again, he found the strength he needed. “Are we having a baby?” 

She nodded, so soft and subtle, he was worried she was wrong. Though he hadn’t anticipated this step so soon in their relationship, he couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming sense of relief and joy. His mouth shot up, the corners lifting to his temples, and he shone with brilliance. 

“Betty, that’s fantastic!” 

Her eyes went wide, her smile joining suit. “Really?” 

“Yes!” he exclaimed, and he caught her as she leapt out of the chair and into his arms. He swung her around in the tiny space of their dining room, clutching her tightly to his chest, vowing to never let go. 

Now as they sat on the couch, months later, Jughead’s hands working out the knots in her feet, Betty knew that joy still remained within him. She crawled out of his grip, making her way over to him and leaning in against his shoulder. He put his arm around her, pulling her in tight. He kissed the top of her head. 

“I miss her too, baby,” she whispered, and she could feel him tremble slightly against her. She reached over for his other hand and placed it gently over her belly. “But she’s still here.” She giggled, adjusting her bottom into the cushions for comfort. “In fact, she’s probably somewhere in this belly, playing with our son. He won’t sit still.” 

Jughead chuckled, feeling the little kicks that jumped out at him through the soft skin of her abdomen. 

“He would have loved her, Betts.” 

She turned her chin up to face him, watching the sorrow storm up in his eyes. She pressed a kiss to his chin and brought his eyes back down to hers. 

“He _will_ love her, Jughead. We will make sure he always knows about his Aunt Jellybean.” 

Jughead nodded softly, the storm subsiding and the light returning to his eyes. “You’re right. He will definitely love her, and she will love him. After all, they share the same name.” 

Betty smiled and looked back down at her tummy, her hand now placed over his as they felt their son, Judson Barrett – or JB, they would call him – kick and tumble and flutter within her, filling up the space for mischief and spunk within them both that had gone missing with Jellybean’s passing. 

As they watched the screen, clutching each other tight while the dinosaurs ran rampant through the theme park, Betty felt a sense of completion. They were here, together, as they were meant to be. New fresh flowers and the stuffed dog were now on the coffee table beside them – Jughead, Betty, Jellybean, Hot Dog, and their new baby settling in to form the most beautiful and natural portrait of family that she had ever seen. 


End file.
